Interviews with industry professionals that share their tips how to work with trends.

New Content 2018: interview with Kat Uno, new tutorials, drawing worksheets and a brand new drawing challenge!

During week one, you will become acquainted with the most significant trends for SS/AW 2019. The Trend Workbook covers surface design, fashion, illustration, decor and stationery trends! Learn about core creative techniques that will help you innovate and interpret trends in unique ways. The assignments invite you to understand better your creative voice and develop your personal style. An introductory lecture by Denise will offer tips how to use trends in collections for licensing. You will create one collection for licensing or to sell as stock graphics.

Resources: Creative drawing worksheets to help you get started. Tutorials how to create trend-inspired, cohesive collections. Recommended reading. Unlock bonus content when you finish your assignments!

Week 2 is all about focusing on pattern design. You will spend the week creating a collection of patterns informed by trends. Includes a lecture on best practices for designing unified pattern collections.Resources: Pattern tutorials by Sabina. Recommended readings.

Week 3 will focus on creating graphics for stationery and greeting cards. You will make your final trend collection.Resources: Tutorial how to create complex elements (like wreaths) for greeting cards. Recommended reading and inspiration resources.

During the final week, you will learn how to create a lookbook for trade shows. Tips how to present your collections.Resources: Tutorial how to make a lookbook. Recommended readings and inspiration.

Our drawing challenges run in parallel with the workshop and offer industry relevant prompts to inspire and increase your social media exposure. Participation is optional.
The 2018 challenge is all about flora and fauna! Being able to draw stylised flowers and insects is essential for commercial artists. Such elements are often used in SS patterns and collections. This drawing challenge provides daily prompts with fascinating species of flowers and insects as well as tips how to draw from reference and stylise your graphics. Follow us on Instagram and draw along!

Kat Uno is a Hawaii-based illustrator and designer. She strives to make the world a more colorful and fun place through her cute and whimsical illustrations. Kat has been a rising star on the licensing and illustration field. We became obsessed with the work she did in our Trend Workshops and wanted to know more about her process. In this interview Kat also offers valuable tips on how to use trends for licensing. She is represented by the Astound Agency and some of her clients include Hallmark Books, KLUTZ, Ladybug Magazine, Bebe Casa Fabric, Target. Check her website!

Foundation class, Trends Workshop graduates, or having the following skills:Hand drawing: self taught beginner, intermediate and advanced students.Processing graphics: intermediate to advanced. You need to be able to process your drawings. Knowledge of Illustrator is NOT required! You have to know how to create patterns.

Please note, this class does not teach how to create patterns or vector graphics.

Drawing materials: sketchbook, pencils. Any other materials you are used to create your graphics.Hardware: camera or phone to take pictures of your work, scanner (optional), printer. You are NOT required to use drawing tablet!. Webcam and mic are optional in the live sessions.Software: Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator are recomended, however, if you only use analogous tools only you can still take the workshop.
Other: Good internet connection

Class is now Self-Paced! Start any time.

Q&A

No, you can work with any medium and technique you are used to. You can process with Photoshop or paint by hand only. We are not going to focus on vector processing and also the tutors will not answer questions about Adobe Illustrator. This would be out of the scope of the class. If you are interested in hand drawn vector graphics please consider the Foundation Class.

About 10 hours per week. The class is packed with materials and resources so you can spend more time if you like. At the same time the assignments are very focused and on point so you can also learn in a shorter time period.

Questions are encouraged! Feedback will be provided on all assignments submitted until the first 4 weeks of the live workshop. The self-paced class does not include tutor feedback. You can still post int he Facebook group.

Yes! you will not be hindered in any way if you are not able to attend the live sessions. You can submit questions in the website forum or chat with the tutor. All learning material – lectures, tutorials, downloads will be available on the website. To complete the class you only need access to the website.

Registration Closed.

“To me, the Trend Workshop was not a workshop, it was a journey! Before I took the workshop, I had a very basic understanding of trends and how they affect the market. I am a professional freelance designer and illustrator and had sold clip art sets for a couple of years before I took this course. This course changed the way I looked at everything: art, design and fashion. ” – Rhian Awni

“This class was absolutely amazing! In just four weeks I feel that I further developed my personal illustration style and that my technical skills in Illustrator improved three fold. I also have a better grasp on how to approach trends and use them as a point of departure in my work. This course was extremely informative, motivational, and inspiring, and a great follow up to the Foundations course. Thank you so much Sabina!!! 🙂 I am already looking forward to your new classes in the fall.” – Laura Rossi

“I was on Sabina’s Foundation class and when I saw the post about Trends class, I instantly knew I had to be a part of it. Well, my budget wasn’t so happy about my decision, but I knew I’ll regret it if I won’t be able to attend – so I signed in the last days prior to class. After the first lesson I was so thrilled and happy that I made the right decision. Trends are all around us, but we don’t pay so much attention until someone points them out for us. Or we do, but don’t spot all the connections. Sabina will do that and more. This class will take your work on another level and you’ll look at your art work from other perspective.” – Sandra Pr.

Student Work

Trend Inspired Collections

About the tutors

Denise Holmes

Children's Book Illustrator

Description

Denise has been illustrating professionally for the past 10 years working both in children’s book publishing and licensing. Denise is represented by Nicole Tugeau of Tugeau 2 Illustrators & Authors and A Fresh Bunch for licensing. Clients include Yo-Yo Books, Roost Books, Albert Whitman & Co., Owlkids Books, MPix, Simply to Impress and CVS. You can see more of my work at www.niseemade.com

Sabina Radeva

Graphic designer, web designer, illustrator

Bio

Sabina is a graphic designer, art director and illustrator based in UK. Sabina is the founder of Design Garden – a company specialising in branding and web design since 2009. She is also the founder of The Ink Nest – a popular website for stock illustrations. Recently she started illustrating picture books with Penguin Random House. Sabina has extensive experience in developing engaging, result-oriented online classes and has been teaching since 2011. Find more here: sabinaradeva.com